| About Steven |
 “An off the street organist” is how Steven describes himself. Although he has taken music lessons for most of his life, he has never formally been trained in either the piano or organ and did not pursue degrees in either in college. He just loves to play.He began early, at age 3, picking out hymn tunes on the piano at his home. He would hear them at church then come home and play them with one finger for his mother. As he felt more confident he would add notes and embellishments to his songs. Steven’s Grandmother, Eunice Turner, was a piano major in college and was the organist at his home church for over 30 years. It was with her encouragement that he began a lifelong musical journey. Steven always wanted to play the organ but his Grandmother strongly urged him to continue to take piano lessons, which he did until he was in high school. He would go to her house almost daily and practice there with her. Lessons learned there, for music and life, would keep the fire lit and give him the inspiration he needed to continue pursuing music, even after her death. Steven studied piano with various teachers until he went to college, High Point University in High Point, North Carolina, pursuing a degree in Furniture Marketing. At that time he began studying with Mary Alicia Cox at the Greensboro Music Academy. Steven credits Mary Alicia with the tremendous growth he experienced as a musician and says that it brought him to a new level. During that time he found creative ways to use his improvisational style while learning new challenging music. During college and the years prior, he would always go off to play the organ at a church or wherever he could find one! The organ being his first love, he decided to study it further when he moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan to pursue a Furniture Design Degree. He studied briefly with Jonathon Tuuk in Grand Rapids and began an exciting chapter in his life learning all he could get his hands on. Steven moved back to his hometown of Pelham, Georgia in 2000 with his wife Angie. High School sweethearts, he and Angie have two daughters ages 6 and 18 months. He and his wife began a wholesale business in 2004, Hype Strype, and work together there. He plays the organ at Hand Memorial United Methodist Church (heard on this website) in Pelham. |